Dolly Parton Announces First Dates for Pure and Simple Tour

Dolly Parton fans, mark your calendars. The first set of dates of the legend's upcoming Pure & Simple Tour have been announced, and the string of 14 shows begins June 3 in Greensboro, N.C.

The Pure & Simple Tour is Parton’s largest North American tour in more than two decades, with 16 cities in the first leg including Charleston, W. Va., Philadelphia and Cincinnati. Parton is also slated to host a benefit concert in November as part of the tour that will support her Imagination Library, which provides free books to children across Tennessee. The tour coincides with the release of a new double-disc record called Pure & Simple With Dolly’s Biggest Hits, which includes all of her classic songs in addition to a few new tracks.

Parton has been keeping extremely busy lately, not only gearing up for her tour, but also with the creation and success of her TV movie Coat of Many Colors, which tells the story of one summer growing up in rural East Tennessee with her family. Named for her song by the same title, it’s the first of three the artist signed on to make with NBC, the second of which will be based on her tune "Jolene." Coat of Many Colors comes to DVD on May 3.

The legend recently gave a unique performance at the ACM Awards with pop star Katy Perry, singing a colorful medley "Coat of Many Colors" with "Jolene" and "9 to 5."